Pandemic Agility: Towards a theory on adapting to working from home

Abstract

Since the world was taken over by the coronavirus pandemic, professionals from all areas have had to adapt to the changes imposed by health measures, in a sudden process, which points to permanent changes in the forms of consumption and work. In the present study, we aimed to document the main practical challenges faced by agile software development teams in this adaptation process. We conducted an interview based qualitative study, using techniques from Grounded Theory, and collected data on the experience of five agile software development teams, in three different countries. Besides bringing a rich description of the journeys of the studied teams, our results highlighted four main challenges in the adaptation processes: (1) the full digitization of agile ceremonies, (2) a loss of project awareness, (3) the administration of work-life balance, and (4) the self-management transition in less mature teams. Overall, the participants reported increased levels of perceived productivity, and we share along practices and recommendations that may be useful for other teams facing similar challenges.